Gun turret



June 4, 1963 AKE T. G. SEGERBERG 3,091,994

GUN TURRET Filed Nov. 3, 1959 INVENTOR.

AKE TURE 6U57 4VSGRBERG BY M ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,091,994 GUN TURRET Aka T. G. Segerberg, Karlskoga, Sweden, assignor to Aktiebolaget Bofors, Bofors, Sweden, a corporation of Sweden Filed Nov. 3, 1959, Ser. No. 850,604 Claims priority, application Sweden Nov. 20, 1958 Claims. (CI. 89-36) The present invention relates to guns, especially automatic recoiling guns, and more particularly to guns mounted in protective turrets.

In modern warfare, the gun may be exposed to dangerous radioactivity and attempts have been made to protect the gun by shielding the turret against the ingress of radioactive isotopes and other contaminated particles. 0bviously, the shielding of a gun involves the problem that it must not interfere with the elevational and traversing movements of the gun.

It is known to provide shielding parts which follow the traversing movements of the gun and allow elevation of the gun barrel by means of a vertical slot, the length of which is slightly in excess of that of the elevational range of the gun barrel. This slot, in turn, is covered by another shielding part which is secured to a non-recoiling elevating part of the gun barrel and the vertical extension of which is about twice that of the slot. The sealing between the shielding parts which are movable in reference to each other, comprises two seals extending primarily in a vertical plane and two seals extending primarily in a horizontal plane.

It has been found difiicult to design these seals so that they have an adequately long service time; especially the design of the horizontal seals is difficult as these seals are subjected to strong wear due to the fact that the move ments of the shielding parts occur at a right angle relative to the horizontal seals. I

It is an object of the invention to provide a novel and improved gun turret design suitable for use in atomic warfare which affords satisfactory shielding against radioactivity and other contamination of the air, has an ade-; quate service time as to its shielding action and is rugged in construction.

Other and further objects, features and advantages of the invention will be pointed out hereinafter and set forth in the appended claims forming part of the application.

In the accompanying drawing, a preferred embodiment of the invention is shown by way of illustration and not by way of limitation.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view, partly in section, of a protective gun turret according to the invention, and

FIG. 2 is a section taken on line II-II of FIG. 1.

Referring now to the figures in detail, there is shown in FIG. 1, the gun barrel and the breech casing 1 of the gun. The breech case is supported by standards 2 which,- in turn, are mounted on a platform 3. This platform is rotatable about a vertical axis to provide for the travers ing movements of the gun. The breech casing is mounted in its standards by means of trunnions 4 to provide for the elevational movements of the gun barrel. 1

The terms vertical and horizontal are used herein primarily to designate that the gun barrel is pivotal about two axes at a right angle to each other. In actual practice, the location of the two axes may not be vertical and horizontal respectively, at least temporarily, for in-- stance, when the turret is installed on a ship.

Rotary platform 3 further mounts two shielding cases 7 and 8, both of generally semi-cylindrical shape and closed at the top by a domed surface. The two shielding cases are separated from each other by a slot of 'ice uniform width. The slot is shown as having a length extending along the entire peripheral outline of the shielding casing, but the slot need to have only a length slightly in excess ,of the elevational range of the gun barrel. The sides of the shielding casings facing each other are closed by walls 9 and 10 which are disposed in parallel relationship to define the aforesaid slot. Each wall 9 and 10 includes a circular opening to accommodate the peripheral margin of a shielding ring 5. This ring is of uniform width and secured to breech casing 1 by means of struts 6 or other suitable means. The center axis of ring 5 is coaxial with the horizontal or elevational axis of the gun barrel so that the ring will participate in an angular movement of the elevating mass of the gun. EVi-,

dently, the breech casing and ring 5 could be journalled directly into the Walls of two shielding casings rather than into separate standards 2.

Ring 5 is sealed to walls 9 and 10 respectively by sealing means 11. These sealing means are shown in FIG. 2 as sealing n'ngs interposed between the peripheral rim of walls 9 and 10 and the peripheral surface of ring 5. However, walls 9 and 10 may also be arranged in direct sealing engagement with ring 5.

As is apparent, ring 5 will seal off the interior of casings 7 and 8 in any elevational position of the gun barrel without interfering with the elevational movement of the gun barrel.

While the invention has been described in detail with respect to a certain now preferred example and embodiment of the invention it will be understood by those skilled in the art after understanding the invention, that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, and it is intended, therefore, to cover all such changes and modifications in the appended claims.

What is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. A protective turret for a gun with a gun barrel movable in elevation and traversing direction, said turret comprising a first shielding means in the form of two casings mounted for joint rotation about a common vertical axis also constituting the axis for traversing the gun barrel, each of said casings has a plane wall, said two walls facing each other spaced apart in parallel relation to define a slot therebetween, said slot extending in a vertical plane and being of a length at least equal to the elevational range of the gun barrel, a second shielding means in the form of a ring member disposed in said slot in a vertical plane and of uniform width at least equal to that of the slot, each of said walls including a circular opening accommodating the circumferential margins of said ring member, said ring member being mounted rotatable jointly with the gun barrel about the horizontal elevational axis thereof, and sealing means between the circumferential rims of said ring member and each of said casings, said sealing means extending arcuately along the length of said slot in the direction of relative movement between said ring member and casings.

2. A protective turret for a gun with a gun barrel movable in elevation and traversing direction, said turret comprising a first shielding means in the form of two casings mounted for joint rotation about a common vertical axis also constituting the axis for traversing the gun barrel, each of said casings has a plane wall, said two walls facing each other spaced apart in parallel relation to define a slot therebetween, said slot extending in a vertical plane and being of a length at least equal to the elevational range of the gun barrel, a second shielding means in the form of a ring member disposed in said slot in a vertical plane and of uniform width at least equal to that of the slot, each of said Walls including a circular opening accommodating the circumferential margins of said ring member, said ring member being mounted rotatable jointly with the gun barrel about the horizontal elevational axis thereof, and sealing means including two strips each held along a circumferential rim of the-ring member in the respective wall opening and in sealing en-v gagement with the respective peripheral margin of the ring member.

3. A protective turret according to claim 1, wherein a center axis of the ring member is coaxial with the horizontal elevational axis of the gun barrel to have the ring member participate in the angular movement of the elevating mass of the gun.

4. A protective turret according to claim 1 and comprising standards mounted within said shielding casings rotatable jointly therewith about said common vertical axis, said standards supporting said gun barrel and said shielding ring pivotal in a vertical plane.

5. A protective turret according to claim 1 wherein said gun barrel and said ring member are joined in a structural assembly, said assembly being supported within and by the turret rotatable about a horizontal axis, said axis being also the elevational axis of the gun barrel.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,363,356 Pfiager Nov. 21, 1944 2,364,951 Corte Dec. 12, 1944 2,407,451 Reiniger Sept. 10, 1946 2,501,662 Clegg Mar. 28, 1950 

1. A PROTECTIVE TURRET FOR A GUN WITH A GUN BARREL MOVABLE IN ELEVATION AND TRAVERSING DIRECTION, SAID TURRET COMPRISING A FIRST SHIELDING MEANS IN THE FORM OF TWO CASINGS MOUNTED FOR JOINT ROTATION ABOUT A COMMON VERTICAL AXIS ALSO CONSTITUTING THE AXIS FOR TRAVERSING THE GUN BARREL, EACH OF SAID CASINGS HAS A PLANE WALL, SAID TWO WALLS FACING EACH OTHER SPACED APART IN PARALLEL RELATION TO DEFINE A SLOT THEREBETWEEN, SAID SLOT EXTENDING IN A VERTICAL PLANE AND BEING OF A LENGTH AT LEAST EQUAL TO THE ELEVATIONAL RANGE OF THE GUN BARREL, A SECOND SHIELDING MEANS IN THE FORM OF A RING MEMBER DISPOSED IN SAID SLOT IN A VERTICAL PLANE AND OF UNIFORM WIDTH AT LEAST EQUAL TO THAT OF THE SLOT, EACH OF SAID WALLS INCLUDING A CIRCULAR OPENING ACCOMMODATING THE CIRCUMFERENTIAL MARGINS OF SAID RING MEMBER, SAID RING MEMBER BEING MOUNTED ROTATABLE JOINTLY WITH THE GUN BARREL ABOUT THE HORIZONTAL ELEVATIONAL AXIS THEREOF, AND SEALING MEANS BETWEEN THE CIRCUMFERENTIAL RIMS OF SAID RING MEMBER AND EACH OF SAID CASINGS, SAID SEALING MEANS EXTENDING ARCUATELY ALONG THE LENGTH OF SAID SLOT IN THE DIRECTION OF RELATIVE MOVEMENT BETWEEN SAID RING MEMBER AND CASINGS. 